


Dancing in Shadows

by peptobismolbird



Series: The Vamp!Tale AU [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: AU, For Chara and Frisk, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Nonbinary Chara and Frisk, Other, Teen Chara, Teen Frisk
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-07
Updated: 2017-05-01
Packaged: 2018-07-22 04:23:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7419631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peptobismolbird/pseuds/peptobismolbird
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the third installment of the vamp!tale AU, a Chara from a no-mercy timeline has wiggled their way free from the void to continue their rampage against humanity, but find themselves stumped and certain humans have their own agenda. Magic has begun to emerge to the surface once again, and the world is once more on a turning point..</p><p>Join the gang of the vamp!tale AU once again to find out as all the mysteries of the timeline are put to rest once and for all! Is everyone read for our FINAL INSTALLMENT?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Hunt

“Where ya’ goin’ kid? You make quite an entrance and then storm off into the dead of night like there’s no tomorrow. Heh.. Dead..” Sans laughed, snapping his boney fingers and tapping his slippers on the pavement as he followed this other, shorter, Chara. They stopped, stretched and turned around, a smile twisting across their lips.

“It isn’t the dead of night, not yet. This city is still bustling with life and…” Chara sighed, taking in a deep breath of the autumn air, “We can smell them close by, so don’t try to step up. You know who I am, you’ve watched my old timeline over and over.. You know what we’re capable of. This is none of your concern, bone boy.”

“Yeah, I’ve seen your timeline, and I remember what you did to my father in ours. Look, I’ll admit, I’d rather not deal with you at all, but you’re right..” Sans sighed, tapping his foot and look down, “I’ve seen what you’re capable of, and I can’t sit around and let it happen. Not my brother, not here.”

Chara almost keeled over and passed out from laughing, and Sans stepped back, confused as to why this child was laughing as if he had let off one of his stellar puns. “What? What exactly do you find so amusing? I haven’t cracked any knife jokes yet, and you’re putting me on edge.”

“You think… You think I’m here for YOU? For.. For monsters?” Chara stumbled between laughs, stretching out their back and wiping their eyes. “No, skeleton, I’m not here for any of you monsters. You were just a stepping stone for greater goals, and now that I’ve used you, I’m done. I don’t care about monsters anymore, you’re safe. Go home.”

“How can I trust that, after everything I’ve seen you do?” Sans asked, pocketing his hands and looking up, tapping his feet nervously. Standing alone in an alley with Chara, this Chara in particular, was nerve-wracking. 

“I have only two things to say to that.. One, because I have far more important things to do, and two..” Chara sighed, stepping off into the darkness, leaving their last word hanging in the air until.. A smile appeared behind Sans, “You can’t trust me.”

~~~

Frisk gently placed Chara on the sofa, undoing the ties in their hair and setting their tiara on the coffee table. They took of Chara’s slippers, setting them down on the floor, and placed an ice-pack over their forehead. When Chara couldn’t answer the mysterious child’s question, they had simply approached and tapped the locket around their neck. There was a small burst of red light, and Chara collapsed to the ground as the child bounced away, although it was more like bouncing out a window, and Undyne, Sans and the royal guard chased after.

Darcy and his elite helped clean up the chaos in the ballroom, escorting everyone out and to their homes, while Alphys sent a text saying she heard about the events from Undyne and just put the final touches on something that would help the group track down the mysterious child, this other Chara. Frisk, however, was considerably more worried about Chara than this child who put them in their current state.

“There’s no need to worry about me, Frisk.. I’m alright. Sleepy, albeit, but okay all the same. Where’s your mom?” Chara coughed, slowly sitting up and leaning their shoulder against Frisk. Since none of the guard was around to see, they allowed themselves to show emotion and affection. Frisk sighed, taking off their crown and setting it down before wrapping their arms around Chara.

“Good, I’m glad you’re okay, and.. Well, as for my mom.. I think she’s with Alphys working on something. I’m not really-” Frisk was interrupted by the misty purple apparition of Sam floating up through the coffee table and doing mini flips in the air.

“Hello my child and now child in law! Happy wedding day!” Sam clapped, or rather, attempted to clap and frowned when not a sound was made. “Eh.. Anyway.. Alphys has finished upgrading a special little something that we’re gonna use to find that angry little munchkin that looks kind of like your lover but smaller and like they haven’t bathed in their entire life.”

“What exactly have you two done..?” Chara sighed, burying their face in Frisk’s shoulder and internally screaming. Frisk rubbed their sighed gently, feeling just how exasperated they were and that they just were not doing too hot at all.

“Alphys added some aesthetic and practical upgrades to everyone’s favorite host.. Mettaton! We’re calling him Mettaton Ex now but for dealing with that munchkin he’s got a special button he can activate to change gear and become Mettaton Neo, which was Alphys’ idea but it’s pretty legit.” Sam explained, doing those weird otter flips and rolls in the air afterward.

“No, no, no.. Why? That’s not okay, no.. Oh my hell, no..” Chara groaned, repeating the phrases over and over while falling over across Frisk’s lap. Frisk responded only by raising an eyebrow and looking up at their mom as the door was practically kicked down.

“Oh yes, darling! Alphys, that precious royal scientist, has given me the most fabulous upgrades I could ever imagine!” Mettaton declared in his smooth, showtime voice as electronic techno music began to play from speakers somewhere on his body. Sam floated by and gave him a would be high five, if they didn’t float through him.

“I didn’t authorize this, did you authorize this Frisk? I swear if you authorized this while I was busy I’m going to flip this table.” Chara grumbled, their voice being muffled by the cushions of the couch. They didn’t like Mettaton very much, and at the moment they were wondering exactly how difficult it would be to set him on fire.

“Nope, but Darcy did!” Sam declared, floating around everyone in circles, doing backstrokes, “Mettaton here has programs that’ll be helpful in finding that munchkin, including but hardly limited to, something that’ll track the specific soul type they have. Red, infused with magic, you know, the kind that leaves you with Crimson eyes, like yours, Chara.”

“Wait.. Fabulous tin-man over here can track that, huh?” Chara asked, sitting up and leaning over the table, eyes burning with curiosity. Sam nodded in response. “Fantastic. I’ll pass this authorization and forget about it if mechanical fabio over here can do me a little job.”

“Frankly, I’m flattered that you would take interest.” Mettaton replied dryly, much more emotion and tone in his voice than before, when he was a weird looking computer box. “Alright, I’ll do whatever it is, it’s a mission for the queen, quite fitting for someone of my stature.”


	2. Soul touching

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chara is exhausted and confused, and so they decide to try to play with the soul they share with Frisk. After they fall asleep, the Baron Darcy arrives with dark news.

“Isn’t it kinda weird that this thing just sort of floats above of us sometimes for no apparent reason? I mean, like.. It’s a giant floating heart that sparkles. Pretty weird if you ask me.” Chara mused thoughtfully, their head on Frisk’s lap as they stared up at the soul they shared as it glowed a soft pink.

“Chara are you sure your head is alright? You sound kind of tired.” Frisk lifted a concerned eyebrow as they looked at Chara, who had a tilt in their grin and appeared to be half spaced out and half focused on the heart.

“Yeah, yeah, but seriously.. It’s so weird.. I wanna touch it..” Chara replied groggily, nodding their head slowly in confirmation of what they said, as if they weren’t even sure of the answer themselves.

“Is it even possible to touch it?” Frisk asked curiously, looking over at Chara who was now leaning up and flailing their arms in the air until finally their hands landed on the floating soul and they gripped it tight. What Frisk didn’t expect, however, was the almost electric surge the touch sent through their body, making them blush furiously, “Oh… I guess.. I guess so.”

“Whoa… It’s so squishy…” Chara gasped slowly, squeezing and playing with the soul, whimpering softly as they did so, “It feels so nice… What is it doing, like? What? Are you feeling this..? It’s so cool..”

“I’m.. I’m feeling it alright.” Frisk said, stiffening their body and tightly gripping the armrest of the sofa, screaming internally. It was pleasing, but not necessarily in the sexual sense that was usually associated with the feeling they were experiencing. The entire location of the feeling changed to deep within their chest, and it was beyond strange to have this happening.

“It’s.. It’s starting to get kind of sticky… Gahhh, there’s red stuff all over my hands, what the heck is it?” Chara exclaimed, but continued to play around with it anyway, feeling all over the heart to figure out what the substance coming off it was, all while trying to hide in the whimpers and moans inside of themselves. “It’s wet, Frisk. Why is it wet? Do you wanna touch it?”

“Chara why.” Frisk sucked in their breath, reaching up and pulling the soul away from Chara’s touchy-feely hands. It was, in fact, sopping wet and goopy, and it felt incredibly strange to hold, like playing with wet putty. “No more touching the soul.”

“Awh…” Chara frowned, leaning their head back down on Frisk’s lap and taking in a deep yawn, rolling over and burying their face in their stomach, wrapping their arms around them tightly. It wasn’t before long that Chara had fallen asleep again. Frisk wasn’t sure how long Chara was sleeping for, but an hour before they woke up, Darcy entered the room with a folder tucked under his arm.

Darcy tossed the folder down on the coffee table and took a puff from his pipe, sighing deeply before he spoke, “We couldn’t find the child in time. The kid vanished in the night time streets like thin air, and we just got report of some nasty business. I dunno who this kid is, but something is seriously wrong with them.”

“Nasty business..? What happened?” Frisk asked, and Darcy simply gestured to the folder. Leaning over and picking up the folder, opening it up to see a crime scene report. They began to scan over it, and pick up all the small details on the paper. “Who were they?”

“Just a regular family, nothing special at all. Judging by everything we’ve seen, you think this was just a random act of insanity? I mean look at it, they trashed the place and just took off.” Darcy suggested, gesturing his pipe to the pictures of the scene. He was right, the entire apartment was torn apart, but Frisk had a sneaking suspicion about it.

“No, it wasn’t random.. They were looking for something, but I’m not sure what.. Yet, anyway.” Frisk replied thoughtfully, but that was a lie. They knew exactly what they were looking for, and they had it right in their room. The tiny pink blanket with the initials C.L, and Frisk had quite the hunch about it. “Do me a favor?”

“That’s kind of my job, buddy. What do you need?” Darcy asked, tipping his hat with his spare hand and taking a puff from the pipe. Frisk was willing to bet money that somewhere in his vest was a pack of flaming hot cheetos that he would be eating later, and that it wasn’t tobacco he was smoking.

“Get my Chara’s birth certificate and all city records you can on this family, please and thank you. I think I know the motivation behind this, and it was definitely the kid from the ballroom. No doubt about it.” Frisk sighed, leaning back against the cushions of the couch, allowing their thoughts to overflow.

“I can do that, yeah. Actually, I might as well go do that now..” Darcy nodded slowly, turning on heel and walking out of the room, still diligently smoking his pipe, leaving a trail behind him as he left.

If what Frisk suspected was true, then the family that was killed was Chara’s birth family, the same family that the other Chara had in their timeline, which would explain why they decided to murder them. It would explain trashing the house, searching for the pink blanket that once belonged to them, something they had associated with being safe. Now all they had to do to confirm it was check Chara’s birth certificate and line it up with the family records. If they were right, than Frisk knew exactly how to catch this other Chara.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided I'd add a little bit of something nice before throwing everyone back into hell™


	3. Crimson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> beep boop

“I got the files you asked for. Turns out you were close to right, there was no way in hell this was a coincidence, but i’m assuming there’s more to this than I saw?” Darcy asked, taking a puff of his pipe as he walked into the office and set the files onto their desk. Family records, birth certificates, orphanage registration, medical history.. All that good stuff.

“Thank you Baron..” Frisk drew in a deep breath and flipped through the files, gazing over the dates and names on the paper. As they thought, the victims where the family that put Chara up for adoption 18 years ago. “Could you send Doctor Alphys to my office when you can? I need to talk to her about something important.”

“Consider it done.” Darcy replied, taking his pipe from his lips and heading out to the door. However, he stopped for a moment to ponder choice of words before he spoke again, “Have you seen what Chara has been up to lately? I might consider it cause for.. Alarm? Or question of their sanity.”

“Oh.. What exactly have they done this time?” Frisk sighed, setting down the files and folding their arms across their chest. Judging by his tone of voice, it wasn’t the same situation as last time Chara did something that was ‘cause for alarm.’ but something a bit more curious.

“You’ve got about 6 adopted children now. Toodles!” Darcy snickered, sliding out the door and shutting it, leaving Frisk alone with their thoughts. 6 adopted children?? How in the hell did that happen? And more importantly, why?

~Earlier that day~

“Chara what the fuck.” Darcy said bluntly, gesturing his pipe out to the courtyard where Mettaton was waiting, arms crossed and standing in front of a group of children, ages varying from 6 to 15. He had no idea what they were planning, but frankly they were too exhausted to deal with any of this.

“Look, trust me, it’s important. For someone like that lunatic on the loose, these kids might be very real targets. They’re just kids, Darcy. Kids without families, kids like me. I try to be cool and disconnected, but this.. These guys have nobody due to something they can’t control, and.. I think they can help us.” Chara stated firmly, the burning crimson of their eyes softening, if just for a moment.

“Does Frisk know you decided to adopt a bunch of toddlers? And one angsty teenager? I feel like this is something important that needs to be shared? I mean, that’s just me but, uh.. You know what they say, it takes a village to.. Whatever the saying is.” Darcy waved about his pipe in exasperation, knowing there was no way he could sway their mind.

“Yeah, yeah, its fine. You have to swing by their office later so do you mind delivering the news? Thanks a million.” Chara answered, not even waiting for Darcy to reply before heading outside to the courtyard to dismiss mettaton and greet the children that were waiting in the courtyard. Darcy sighed, shook his head and walked off, leaving Chara to their antics.

Chara’s first thoughts of seeing the group were rather bland, but sarcastic all the same. Upon a closer count, they noted that there were, in fact, six children in the yard, and that Darcy can’t count for shit. Probably because he was high on something or other. Taking in a deep breath, Chara approached the group with an uncharacteristically gentle smile. “So.. you’re probably wondering why you’ve been brought here, right?”

“Beats the hell out of me..” The older kid muttered under their breath, but one of the smaller children, maybe 5 years old at best, began to jump up and down in excitement.

“The big fancy metal man said you were going to adopt us!! Jenny didn’t believe it but I knew it would be true cause, you might try to be a big scary meanie but you’re a cuddly softie! Its fact!!” She practically squealed, and Chara couldn’t help but laugh as the older kid, Jenny presumably, rolled their eyes.

“Well.. It’s true! If you wish, that is.. You’ll be part of the royal family, and you can stay here at the palace.” Chara smiled, lowering and taking off their shades to show the group their own deep crimson eyes. “You see, I’m very much like all of you.. And I don’t want any of one you to grow up like me.”

“So you’re gonna be like.. Our mom?!?!” The child sitting on Jenny’s shoulders exclaimed, waving their hands towards Chara’s hair as the others ran into hug their legs, and it made Chara smile the most genuine smile, warm and soft; a mother’s smile. Although much more distrusting, the eldest child, Jenny, seemed to have no complaints.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can chat with me at atq-rocket-toaster.tumblr.com


	4. The Council and the Chain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> boop beep

“Chara, I can’t believe you adopted six children. If you keep up these kind of behaviors, taking in orphans and what-not, people might get to see the heart of gold underneath all of that grumpy.” Frisk laughed, leaning back at their desk and taking a moment before the council arrived.

“They aren’t just orphans, Frisk! You know? If you’d take some time off tomorrow and meet them, I’m sure you would love each and every one of them.” Chara encouraged, hoping that Frisk might agree. With a sigh, they continued, “Do you remember what it was like? I know it wasn’t even that long ago, only a little more than a decade, but it seems so.. Distant. I remember, when I was only five, how scared of myself I was because of the things I could do. Because of it, nobody ever liked me. Growing up alone is something I know you understand, and these kids are all so much like us, like me. I see a piece of myself in all of them, and I want to give them a happy life.. You know? I’ll be a grumpy grouch to everyone else, cause that’s part of me too. This, though? This is bigger than that. Does that.. Does that make sense?”

Frisk nodded and smiled, “What did I tell you? Heart of gold.” Was all they got to say before there was a knock on the council room door and it began to open. Frisk stood, running their hands through Chara’s hair before they donned their helmet and sat down. Frisk remained standing as their council streamed into the room and took their seats. Alphys, Darcy, Sam, Undyne, Toriel, Asgore and Washua. Washua didn’t really talk, but was in charge of keeping the entire kingdom clean.

“Welcome everyone to the council, and I’m afraid this session is going to be grim. Darcy, give us the report on what happened this morning on patrol.” Frisk said politely with a curt nod towards Darcy, who was no longer allowed to have his pipe in the council room. It seemed he was bored half to death without it.

“Yes, that.. Nasty business, you see. I was going with Undyne and Papyrus on patrol throughout the city, giving them the lay of the land, you know? Cause if they’re going to move the royal guard to the capital city, as I recommended, then they’re going to have to know what’s what and where’s where. I even took them to that old doughnut shop, Sam do you-” He was cut off sharply but a low growl from Chara. “Yes, quite so. Anyway.. On patrol, after doughnuts, we saw one of the lodge buildings with the door busted down and the lights flickering. So, I take the two into investigate and what we found? Oh heavens, it was.. It was grizzly..”

“It was a murder scene, a brutal one at that. I’m a fighter, and I’ll kill for what’s right and just.. But this was just sick. It was put on display, like you humans would put up sculptures and art or whatever.” Undyne pitched in with an unusually grim expression.

“Why would anyone do such a thing? What did these poor creatures do to deserve treatment like this?” Toriel asked in alarm, greatly disturbed by the mere idea of Undyne’s words.

“I-i did some.. S-some research on the area and.. Y-you know? It turns out.. T-the people there are.. Are an anti-monster group.. T-they.. Hate monsters, with a passion..” Alphys spoke up nervously, tapping her claws repetitively on the table.

“Yes that’s true. I saw some of the clothing they wore, as well. They had ugly red hats with the phrase make our kingdom great again, and a practical shrine to the barrier.” Darcy snorted at the last idea, as if these idiots could make a new barrier to stop monsters.

“They are still living creatures, as hateful as they may be. This kingdom and council promises to protect all life in our domain, the killer has to be stopped.” Asgore declared, confident in a deep voice but a touch of gentleness that really proves where the nickname Fuzzbuns came from.

“You’re absolutely right Father. We have the bait to lure them out, so I say we get on with this before anything else happens.” Chara sat up in their chair as they spoke, clearing their voice in such a way that it radiated dominance throughout the room. “Is the trap done?”

“Of course. Alphys is the most brilliant scientist I’ve ever met, this was an easy task for her with a little bit of my research. Have a look, we call it the anti-determination chain, or ADC for short.” Sam laughed, as Alphys laid out a small device on the table. The image of a long, twisted and strange looking chain with a hook at the end hovered above for all to see.

“Once.. Uhm, Once the h-hook hits a target with a r-red soul.. It.. It l-latches on and it.. I-it. injects the target soul with.. The.. The same stuff in Chara and Frisk’s b-blood that breaks down determination.. It.. It, every so often.. So it.. Weakens them and.. Then wraps itself around the target so.. T-they can’t run.” Alphys stammered, constantly looking over at Chara in fear. Everyone knew Chara’s red soul happened to be unpredictable, too.. And after their last rampage? The implication of using that against Chara weighed heavy.

Chara was going to have this idea purged from existence after they were through with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry its short I guess


	5. Katch a Killer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> deep doop

“You sure about this? It might be really dangerous. You saw what this psycho is capable of doing.” Chara warned, gripping at Frisk’s shoulder. It wasn’t that they didn’t think Frisk could handle themselves, quite the opposite actually, but they didn’t want to see them hurt. Frisk had something that was very obviously wanted, and what lengths this killer would go to get it back was something Chara didn’t know.

“I have faith in my friends.” Frisk replied with a simple shrug, giving Chara a small hug before stepping out of the vehicle. “And I know you have my back if anything doesn’t go the way we planned.”

Frisk could hear Chara grumble something as they took in a deep breath of the frigid night. From their coat pocket, they pulled out the small pink blanket and walked down the streets of the late night city. Frisk couldn’t help but get caught up in the walk; the moon was shining bright above them, and stars were sprinkled about the night sky. The clouds around the moon shifted in the breeze, and next to the moon they were an almost deep blue color, like the sea. Perhaps it was the vampire in them, but the night was beautiful. Being able to walk about it in the night just made them happy; where they were going did not, however.

Arriving at the orphanage, Frisk saw a small child sitting in the cold outside of the burnt ruins. The child had hair that could challenge the length of Rapunzel’s, but it was much, much messier. It looked as if the child’s hair had not been brushed or cared for in the entire span of their life, however long that may be. They were a scrawny kid as well, from what Frisk could see, and unhealthily so. Maybe this wouldn’t be as hard as they thought.

“We know that you’re there.. Are you here to give it back? Or are you going to try and stop me like some kind of idiot?” The child spoke only just above a whisper, loud enough for Frisk to hear as they stepped closer.

“You’re hurting people, and it’s my job to protect the people. All of them, even the ones I don’t like. I want to make a deal with you, how does that sound?” Frisk asked gently, taking another step closer. The child had no response for a moment, and Frisk felt no need to press any farther until they felt the need to reply.

“Speak.”

“I’ll return this blanket to you, I know how important it is, but then you have to do something for me. I want you to come with me, back to the palace. There are other kids there, kids that are just like you.” Frisk urged, finally stepping in front of the child and showing them the blanket they held in their hands.

“I’m not a child.. I have been alive, if you could call it alive, for a span of time that you couldn’t begin to understand. I’ve seen every timeline, every world.. But alright. I’ll take your deal, trickster.” The not-a-child said, standing up and snatching the blanket out of Frisk’s hands. “Lead the way.”

Happy with their deal, Frisk laid their hand on their shoulder, “So.. What’s your name? I think you know mine.” 

“We don’t want to have small talk with you.” They snapped, folding their arms in an angry stance. Then they smirked, reaching into their back pocket and in the moonlight, Darcy could see the glimmer of a blade’s edge. With the drop of his hand, the weapon fired and a scream pierced the night, unholy enough to rip itself into the void.

Just as the two scientist’s said it would, the hook latched onto the killer and ripped their soul from their body. In horror Frisk watched as the soul was beginning to drip with the black goo that set a curse on Chara and themselves. Screaming, the chain wrapped around the child, forcing the soul back into their body. In a blur before Frisk’s eyes, the rest of the guard swept in and hauled the child away.

~Chara~

“Father, has the underground been emptied? The killer has been caught and we need somewhere safer than the surface to keep them.” Chara sighed, removing their helmet and running their hands through their hair, the red in their eyes glimmering. 

“Yes, yes.. Your brother made sure there was no one left.” Asgore nodded gently, but looked down at his child, “Are you sure the underground is the best place for this? Are we really going back to locking people away like that? I know I should not be one to talk, but that sort of solitude..”

“The difference between now and then, is that this is a cold hearted killer. You saw what happened, there isn’t any better spot. But don’t worry, they won’t be in solitude. I’m placing someone I know can get through to them as their guard.” Chara replied calmly, “And speaking of my Brother.. Where is he? I haven’t heard from him in a while.”

“I think he’s still underground. He’s grown so distant from your mother and I, I have no idea what’s going on. Could you, perhaps, talk to him if you find him?” Asgore asked, a worried look falling across his brow.

“Of course. Tell Mother hello for me.” Chara smiled, turning on heel and heading away from the monster village to the armored prison van that was waiting at the base of the mountain. It was almost two in the morning now, but they had never felt quite so awake before as when they knocked on the back door of that van. The prisoner was carried out in the chain by Undyne, who wore a toothy grin.

“Alphys has set up the prisoners cell. It’s quite the contraption, isn’t she brilliant?” Undyne laughed, “I still don’t believe this little punk is the right one. They’re such a scrawny brat.”

“Looks can be pretty deceiving. Let’s just get them to the cell, huh?” Chara shrugged, placing their helmet back on their head and leading the way up the mountain. There was no chatter, but the anticipation of seeing the cell that could hold a power on the level of their own was nerve wracking, to say the least. The anticipation didn’t have to build long before they finally reached the room where Alphys and Papyrus sat.

“Here’s your promotion Papyrus, you get a new updated uniform and provisions. Alphys, here’s yours. Undyne, make sure everything is setup correctly and everyone but the new member of the royal guard gets home safely. Make sure he is set for the night.”

“New member of the royal guard? Alphys!! I’m so excited for you! I didn’t know you wanted to be a member of the guard!” Papyrus declared, and there was a small eruption of laughter from the group.

“No, Papyrus, it’s you.” Chara grinned, giving him a gentle punch on the shoulder.

~Papyrus~

“Human, why do you say such hateful things? I know this situation is very painful and upsetting, but my friends.. My friends are scared! Dear human, your violent actions worry me as well! I do not understand why you behave like this, but I know you’re better than killing! Perhaps all you need is a teacher, someone to show you how to be good! I believe in you, human.” Papyrus leaned towards the cell and spoke loud enough, or what he thought was loud enough (it was actually too loud), for the human killer to hear. He was tired of the hateful, cruel things that this tiny human was screaming. It was disturbing.

“They LIED TO ME! They lied and locked me up in this cell to torture me! Your FRIENDS are LIARS, CRUEL LIARS! THERE IS NOTHING YOU COULD TEACH ME! I HAVE SEEN ALL OF HISTORY!” The human screamed, shaking Papyrus’ down to his bones.

“You are such a strange human, did you know that? You run around, thinking your actions have no consequences and yet.. You are on a dark road, Human. Please, let me help you. You have kindness in your soul, I am sure. I can show you how to love the world around you, and how to forgive! I believe in you.” Papyrus encouraged, “If you promise to give it a chance, I will take you farther underground outside of the cell to learn!”

“What makes you think I wouldn’t kill you as soon as you let me out of this cell, huh? What makes you think I really want to learn anything?” The human spat, angrily tugging at the chains that bound them in the cell. The anti-determination chain was clapped and stabbed into all of their limbs, and stretched them out across it. It hurt the human, no doubt, but Papyrus had a good feeling about this idea.

“Because, Human, I believe in you! And I have a feeling no one has ever told you that before. I think you want to learn what it’s like.” Papyrus beamed, slowly turning off the anti-determination chain and letting it unwind. The human fell to the ground, now unbound and unchained. “Come here to the door, Human.”

“You’re crazy.. I could kill you right now, break open this pathetic cell and kill you. What are you trying to do?” The human growled, shakily standing up.

“I’m teaching you, silly! Lesson one, you don’t kill your friends! Or anyone, for that matter, but especially your friends!” Papyrus smiled (if a skeleton could smile, he was), and opened the gate to the cell and took the human’s hand, “And I’m going to be your friend.”

“And what makes you think I want a friend?” The human snapped, but still taking the skeletons hand and following him farther underground.  
“Because you haven’t killed me! That means you’ve passed lesson one, you don’t kill your friends! You’re making progress already, I told you!” Papyrus papped the human’s head, and smiled. The human only grumbled


	6. How to friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NYEHHEHHEH!!!

“I figured you’d be down here, Azzy.. After all of this time, you’re still sentimental at heart. I’m not complaining, though, I think it’s part of what makes you so great. But now I gotta ask, what brings you here? Doesn’t the soon to be world’s first monster pro-gamer have some practicing to do?” Chara forced a laughter, sitting down next to their brother, no longer in a flower pot. Instead, they rooted themselves in Father’s garden with all the other flowers, slowly wilting.

“I needed a break.” Asriel replied, not warranting any further questions. Chara, however, was not one for warrants nor invitation. They did as they pleased.

“That’s a new one, huh?” Chara snorted, not buying it for a second, “Something isn’t right. I know I’ve been busy, but you’re still my brother and my best friend. I know when something’s wrong, you haven’t even met the new members of the house.”

“Thanks, Chara.. That means a lot to me..” Asriel sighed, finally turning up towards Chara, “I know this is out of nowhere but, you wanted to know. Chara, I don’t think a monster soul is meant to be in a plant for this long. Could you.. Check on it or something?”

“You betcha, pal.” Chara nodded with a smile, taking their fingers and pinching at the stem of Asriel’s flower, slowly and gently pulling the white soul from within. Their smile dropped off the face of the underground in almost an instant.

“Chara.. Chara, what is it?” Asriel started to get worried by the lack of response from their sibling, “Show it to me!”

“We need to get you to Alphys, like now. It’s crumbling..” Chara replied, their voice shaking.

~Papyrus~

“Now, before we can learn how to be a good friend, we have to get you some new clothes! These are the old ruins, and I know our Chara wouldn’t mind a bit if we gave you some of their old clothes! In order to build a lasting friendship, you are going to have a cooking lesson with the best chef in the underground, me! The great Papyrus!! I will be waiting for you there!” Papyrus declared, laughing to himself as he left the small human in their room. He was worried, of course, but that didn’t give him any cause to not believe the human would come through. After all, they had the best teacher! 

A few moments later, the small human stepped into the doorway of the kitchen, “My hair.. It got stuck in my sweater.. I can’t get it all out, it’s too long..” The child spoke barely above a whisper, which Papyrus found odd. He would teach them about conversation later, first! Hair and cooking. And not at the same time.

“Well that is a predicament! Come here, I think this is a perfect time for lesson two!” Papyrs declared happily, and the small human reluctantly obliged, stepping forward and turning their back to Papyrus. Their entire body was shaking with fear, everything told them it was wrong to turn their back on anyone; but they did, just this once, and they were not let down. Papyrus gently pulled all of the child’s long hair from the sweater and let it fall to the ground, “Lesson 2! A friend always helps their friends when they need help! Now, let us make spaghetti! With me teaching you, you’ll be the best chef for sure!”

“Don’t we need.. Like.. stuff..?” The small human asked, looking up at Papyrus with a rather puzzled face. “They cleared everything.. We don’t have stuff..”

“Hmmm.. You’re quite right human!! Not to worry, the great Papyrus has a back up plan! Tell me human, do you like puzzles? Puzzles are my favorite! We can do a small one, in here!”

“Like a.. A picture puzzle..?”

“Yes! A picture puzzle indeed! Those types of puzzles are amazing, and I will share one with you, human!!” Papyrus nodded with a gigantic smile, and lead the small human into the living room. From one of the shelves, he grabbed a puzzle box and set it down onto the table. “Here! This one will be so much fun!”

~No-Mercy Chara~

They were.. Enjoying the puzzle, funny enough. Maybe they were actually starting to enjoy the company of this tall, silly skeleton? Of course, it had been a long time since they truly loved anyone and where had love gotten them? Nowhere. _Flesh cannot love stone, Darling.. And Papyrus, he will take you back to that cell eventually, take you to the humans.. He may not be flesh, but he cannot care for you the way we can._

And slowly, Chara felt their mind slip away into a long forgotten memory, a tragic one at that.. 

“Oh? That.. That isn’t good at all, I’m very sorry for this incident.. Yes, yes I will… Don’t worry, I know of some very good doctors that can talk to Cherice… Of course, it won’t happen again.” Was all they heard before all hell broke loose around them, lamb and wolf screaming into their ears to run, to kill..

 _See?? See?!?! I told you, stupid half-breed demon bastard!!! They’re gonna send you to the hospital just like they did your father and they’re gonna torture you, stick you and hurt you until you die!_ **My sweet child, you must run before it’s too late.. This could be your last chance to do so.** _Run?? Why run?? There’s a kitchen knife just over there, take it. Make sure they never get the chance to call anyone about anything._ **It’s too risky, we would be caught. Our child loves this human, it just isn’t worth it.** _Doesn’t matter. Revenge is too sweet, no one is going to send us to a place like that.. Not if this stupid witless child will listen. Do it, take the knife. Take the knife and end that pathetic human. Do it._

Chara took the kitchen knife, ran to the living room and began to cry. Partly because of the noise and shouts going on all around them, but also because they didn’t want to do this. They loved their Mama, and they didn’t want to hurt them, but they had to, right now it was the only way to get wolf to stop shouting and being so cruel, and the only for them to ever really be safe. They had to be safe, right? The two weren’t wrong.

And Mama came to comfort them and see what was wrong, kneeling down next to Chara and wrapping her arm around them. Chara looked up and with tears in their eyes they whispered three words… Before thrusting the blade into her heart.

_GOOD, GOOD! Stick it again, stick it again you worthless rat!_ **I am proud of you, child.. You did what you had to do in order to survive. You will not regret this..**

“That was my Mama.. I love her, why did I have to do this?” Chara sobbed, dropping the knife and leaning back up against the sofa.

 **Flesh cannot love stone, my sweet child. That human could never love you, not the way I can. No matter what, I am always with you.** _And I will always guard lamb, despite my distaste for you, demon half-breed._ **We are kindred, dear Chara, and we will be together, forever and always. I am your only friend.**

“HUMAN! HUMAN! What is the matter human, are you alright?!” Papyrus shouted, and Chara was shaken back to the real world, mumbling something that couldn’t be heard, not even by themselves. “You were crying human, will you tell me why?”

“Papyrus.. Do.. Do friends.. Do friends make their friends do things they don’t want to do? Just.. Theoretically..” Chara whimpered over the noise around them; so much noise..

“Of course not! That is the very opposite of friendship! Are you not happy with our puzzle, human?” Papyrus answered quickly, a look of concern falling across his face.

“No, no it isn’t that.. Just.. stuff.. I’m happy with a puzzle..”

~Frisk~

“This is an incredibly important meeting, alright your grace? The humans through that door, sitting in the council chamber, are going to really shape the future of your life and this kingdom. No pressure.” Darcy smiled, patting Frisk on the back before turning away with a puff of his pipe.

“You haven’t even said what this is-” Frisk turned to sass, but Darcy was already long gone. Frisk sighed and opened the door, facing something that they did not expect in the slightest, but certainly wasn’t a disappointment.

“Our other Mama!!” Came the cry of a small child, who practically flung herself across the council table and wrapped themselves firmly around Frisk’s leg.

“I’m sorry she gets so excited.. Do you want me to get her off you? My name is Jenny, and that one on your leg is Emma.” Jenny asked and introduced, slowly standing up and offering a hand.

“No, no.. It’s fine, completely. Can I just have an introduction from everyone else? Thank you.” Frisk replied with a smile, running their hand through Emma’s hair.

“I’m Caitlyn.” One said, probably around 14, leaning back in her chair with feet on the table. She was also wearing a bit of a cowboy hat and a silly grin.

“I’m Will!” Called one of the younger ones, followed up by another “And I’m Jason. We’re twins!” The two laughed. One of the, which was almost immediately noticeable, wore a bandana across their forehead. The other had bandaged and stitched together gloves. They must have been around 11?

The last one to say their name was the second to smallest, possibly around 8 years old. “My name.. Is.. My name is Jamie..” She whispered softly, just loud enough for Frisk to hear. She was most noticeably wearing an awkwardly large tutu.  
What a family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hooman souls


	7. Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmares and dinner

“Alphys? Hey, Doc!! Whatever Anime you’re watching on the job can wait, I need your help. Pronto, immediately. Right now.” Chara swung the door open to Alphys’ lab with a swift kick and shouted again, “Right! NOW! ALPHYS!”

“I-I’m coming d-down now, sorry!” Alphys cried out, almost tripping down the stairs as they ran over to the door to come face to face with an incredibly distraught Chara and what seemed like a droopy flower, but upon closer inspection could be seen as none other than Asriel. “What happened..?”

“Something is wrong with his soul, it’s falling apart. Why is this happening, the transfusion worked!” Chara almost shouted, and when Alphys didn’t respond in less than a second, they shouted again, “My brother is DYING! How?!”

“I.. I’m.. S-sorry.. A M-monster soul… A monster soul can’t survive out of it’s body for long. The flower wasn’t.. It wasn’t ever Asriel’s body, his soul must be incredibly strong to survive that long in a flower.” Alphys stuttered, looking away from Chara’s piercing gaze. “I can try to.. To find something that can keep it together.. For now, just transfer him to a new flower. It should delay the process while I find something.”

“Alright, alright.. Fine.. As soon as you find anything that might work, no matter how slim a chance.. Call me, shoot me a text, send a pigeon, I don’t care. Just let me know.” They sighed, turning on heel and stepping out of the door.

“I will, I promise!” Alphys called out after them, but Chara was already sprinting to Father’s new garden. Functioning more as a machine than human, Chara quickly uprooted a new flower, placed it in a new pot and transferred Asriel’s soul into that one. Taking in a deep breath, Chara waited for something to happen. Waiting for their brother to say something, anything, even just breath.

“Chara..? What happened?” Asriel groaned, looking around and seeing the old flower now completely withered, “Am I in a new flower pot? Or.. New flower?”

“Ah.. Yes. We had to move you to a new flower while Alphys could find something to help you. Not to worry though, you’re going to be fine. I promise.” Chara smiled weakly, placing a hand on the new flower pot and pulling it into their lap.

“Chara, I… I’m not sure what happened.. When you did the transfer but.. I feel.. I feel really numb. I can’t feel the petals or leaves the way I could last time..” Asriel said, and began to mumble something else under their breath, “Or anything else, for that matter..”

~Frisk and Kids~

“So kids, what would you all like to have for dinner? Anything you want, anything at all. Eventually it’ll have to be healthy, but for now it can be whatever.” Frisk smiled, looking at all the faces in the room.

“Mac and cheese!!” “No, mashed potatoes!” Both twins called out at once, paused for a moment to look at each other, and then turned back to Frisk with a nod, “Both. Both is good.”

“COOKIES!!!!” Emma shouted, jumping up and down.

“I like Pizza.” Caitlyn inputted with a shrug.

“Pizza is good.” Jenny said with a nod.

“Jamie? Is there anything you want?” Frisk asked with a patient smile.

“I like.. I think Lasagna is tasty..”

“Alright! Well that does sound like a bit of a hodge podge dinner but, eh, who cares, right? As long as it’s tasty! Well, I can take you guys to the living room while I get everything ready, and my friend Darcy can show you around the house.” Frisk declared, opening the door to the council room as the smallest ones ran out first, followed by the oldest. This was going to be a kind of adventure that Frisk had never experienced before.

Caitlyn, however, stopped at the door and stood right next to Frisk, looking them up and down with an odd look in her eye, “Lit.” She shrugged, and continued walking outside. When they arrived at the living room, Emma had already found her way on top of Darcy’s shoulders and playing with his nose.

“Looks like you really got your hands full, your grace.” Darcy laughed, Emma’s tiny little hands now over his eyes, “This one already spouted the entire order, and wants to go see the chef with me? How about it?”

“Sure, just don’t get lost and please, I know how clumsy you are, keep the child safe.” Frisk replied with a worried look, almost shocked by the fact that they were willing to trust Darcy with a child. Of course, he was much more competent than he acted most of the time.

“Let’s go!!! Giddyup silly man!” Emma shouted happily, gently kicking Darcy in the side. He laughed in response, turning around and trodding out of the living room. In the kitchen, this little one would have the privilege of meeting Sans and Grillby, who worked at the royal kitchen on weekends.

~No-Mercy Chara~

_Mommy? Mommy! Please wake up, Mommy! Why aren’t you saying anything?! Mommy, wake up!! I’m scared, there are all these bright lights and loud noises, and Pappy.. They’re taking Pappy away.. Mommy, I’m so scared…_

_“So, what are you gonna do, huh? You can’t stop me from doing what I please, I live without consequence, you can’t touch me.” Frisk boasted, and Chara rolled their eyes. Of all the timelines they’ve seen in death, this Frisk had to be the absolute worst. The underground was a stepping stone for greater purpose, a noble sacrifice, not some play thing for insanity._

_“You know, it’s high time you learned your place..” Chara removed their hand from behind their back, Frisk’s soul in hand. They rushed forward to try and stop Chara’s next move, but in a swift squeeze of their hand, their soul was crushed. Down to 0 hp in a matter of seconds, and they died. Swiping their hand out in front of them, Chara looked at their menu of options before Frisk came back to reset._

_Tired of this endless cycle, Chara knew there was only one option. They had to erase this world and escape to another, and they had to do it quickly. And so they did, with a quick press of a button, the world began to erase itself from existence as Chara scrambled to make it out with their new body intact. They could see the light of the new world just within grasp, but then something happened that they did not expect._

_With a grab by the ankle, something pulled Chara back into the endless darkness of the erased world, a void with nothing but shadow. Twisting and twirling, the darkness wrapped around, the vicious screams of the cruelty in their mind loud but muffled in the dark. Around them, the void locked a capsule of fear around Chara._

_They were afraid, they were still afraid.. What if it came back? What if they never left? It could all be a trick, what if.._

“HUMAN! Human, I have returned with supplies for spaghetti! Undyne will never suspect a thing about this, nyeh heh heh!!! With the best teacher ever, they’re going to be so proud of you!” Papyrus declared, swinging open the old door to the ruins with a bag of groceries in hand.

Chara rolled out of their old bed, tears in their eyes. Rubbing at their eyes, they opened the door to see Papyrus. Nagging at the back of their mind were all the what if’s of this world, if only by nagging, they meant screaming. After all, one fact was a little more than a mere what if.. They were, undoubtedly, dying.

“Did you have a nice nap, human? Because after cooking lessons, we’re going to go to the training hall and learn how to converse with others!!” Papyrus laughed, taking the bag to the kitchen, Chara following after. Chara must have only been four feet tall, and Papyrus towered above them.. Yet it didn’t put them on nerve, oddly enough.

Spaghetti time it was, then.


	8. Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> yeep yoop

“Chara, I know this is going to be something that you don’t want to hear but.. I wish I had died at the barrier. I wish you hadn’t saved me.. I would have died a hero, Chara, the hero of the underground, the prince who broke the barrier. Now my soul is falling apart.. And I’ve read enough books to know where this is going. I don’t want to live long enough to see myself become the bad guy.” Asriel admitted, looking away from Chara’s gaze, afraid of how his sibling might respond.

“This isn’t just any story, Azzy. We can and will save you, you’re not going to become the bad guy. You could never be the bad guy, you’re too cute and fuzzy for that. There’s nothing this world can do that we can’t fix, I promise. When have I ever let you down?” Chara replied, forcing a smile with a struggle. They understood the feeling, the fear of becoming the villain; Chara was always scared of becoming the villain the world thought them to be.

“Well, you haven’t.. But Chara, not everything is fixable. You can’t mend every wound, no matter how hard you try. You might be able to save my soul, but at what cost? What would it take? What if I stop feeling altogether, what if I become empty, my soul becomes empty? Is that worth it..?” He questioned, his voice shaking and quivering. His very existence was in question, more than enough to shake even Chara down to their core.

“I won’t let that happen. I will not, I refuse.” Chara stated firmly, giving a reflectively gentle pat on Asriel’s petals. “Not now, not ever. You’re my family, and family means that nobody gets left behind.”

“You got that from a movie, Chara.. Stop pulling those cheesy lines on me.” Asriel grumbled.

“I did, yes, but it still rings true. Plus, you loved that movie and you know it. I’m pretty sure you cried during it, actually.” Chara teased, “Come on, how about we head back to the surface and go watch that movie with our family? You have some new people to meet.”

“Alright, let’s do it!” Asriel nodded, and Chara picked up his flower pot before heading out of the old new home and towards the city of humans where family awaited.

~Darcy and Emma~

“Hey there, my guys, my pals. There’s a bit of a big family upstairs to feed, the whole Royal family. And I mean the whole royal family, like, all of em. The King and Queen of monsters have been invited, and then there’s the little ones and then Chara and Frisk. It’s uh.. It’s like, a lot of stuff.” Darcy sniffed, rubbing his nose as the small human Emma continued to poke at his face; She was done with that, however, as soon as she saw Grillby and stared with wide eyes.

“Fire uncle… So cool…” The child gawked, eyes wide and jaw dropped, a small line of drool falling from her mouth and onto Darcy’s head.

“Well, looks like you’ve got a niece now Grillbz.” Sans joked to Grillby, who chuckled and replied in a language and manner that neither Darcy nor Emma understood. “And you seem to have picked up one of Chara’s little ones. Let me tell ya, I never thought Chara was one for kids all things considered but I guess they can kid around with the best of em.”

“Har har har, Snooze. Anyway, I wrote down what the kiddos wanted and such and I’ll leave it with you two and the kitchen. Do you know where little miss Muffet is? I need to talk to her about the spiders and such.” Darcy rolled his eyes, realigning his shoulders and shifting Emma into a more comfortable positions.

“Uh, I think she’s in the kitchen? I don’t know, but howzabout it kid? Want to go see the queen spider lady?” Sans laughed. Unsurprisingly, the child nodded rapidly in anticipation.

“Well, let’s get going, then. See you around, bone boy.” Darcy replied, walking past the two at the counter and heading through the door in a bit of a hunch so that Emma didn’t hit her head, and wormed his way through the kitchen to the back. Muffet was, to say the least, dressed for the occasion of baking. Now that she no longer needed money to get her family of spiders from the ruins, she was able to lower her prices.

Just a little bit.

“Hey there Muffet, how goes preparing for your bakery to open? I hear the grand opening will be in a few days.” Darcy asked casually, rummaging through his pocket for something. “I’ve also heard that it’s going to be quite the occasion.”

“Yes, it will be in a few days and yes, it will be an occasion.” Muffet replied blandly, not even looking up from her work, “Why are you here, Darcy? I’m very aware that you never go anywhere for the subject of small talk.”

“Awh, come on? What makes you think I wouldn’t just drop by to hang out with my favorite spider?” Darcy grinned, and when Muffet gave no response, he sighed and slipped a note into her apron, “Alright, alright. You got me. I have some information for you. Don’t worry about a thing, Ma’am.”

“Mmm.. Yes, of course. Now, get going! I’m a very busy spider, Darcy, and unless you have a bag of gold in your pockets, I am no longer interested.” Muffet replied, and without even turning her head she whacked Darcy on the nose with a wooden spoon. “I will get a newspaper if you don’t hurry up!”

 

“Yes Ma'am, I’m going.” Darcy nodded, turning on heel and working his way out of the busy kitchen. One of the strange parts about the kitchen was Muffet’s kitchen hands, which were actually just a bunch of spiders. It was almost whimzical to watch them fall and fly on web to carry out Muffets direct orders and prepare whatever was desired. “So how was that, kid? Were you scared?”

 

“No.. She looked pretty..” Emma nodded, “Let’s go tell Mama!!”

 

~No Mercy Chara~

 

“Okay, now Human, you did very well in the kitchen! At this rate, you will soon become one of the greatest pasta makers in all the world! Now, if you’ll please follow me, I’m going to take you to the training dummy! I want you to practice talking to it!” Papyrus encouraged, leading the small Human Child from the old ruins home towards the training room. The dummy was still there, surprisingly enough, and was covered in dust. 

They just sort of stared at it.. What was talking to some dummy going to do for them, how was this going to help them? Hell, how was any of this going to help them? According to their companions, staying here with Papyrus wasn’t going to do them any good. This wasn’t going to save them.. Despite the fact they thought it might give them a reason to save themselves. After all, what was the point of surviving anymore, why would they bother? What was talking to some stupid Dummy going to accomplish… _You have to run, now.. Run, sweet child of summer. You must_.

Chara stepped towards the dummy and looked up at it before taking in a deep breath, “Uhm… Hello?” They mumbled, looking away from the dummy and towards Papyrus. He only motioned for Chara to speak up.

“Hello, dummy…” Chara spoke up nervously, looking back to Papyrus, who nodded while giving a big smile and a thumbs up, “How are you?”

“Ah! Excellent!!” Papyrus declared happily, “I knew you could! Now, in order to keep going with conversation, I am going to hide behind the Dummy and talk for it! It’s going to be as easy as pie!”

_Easy as..? Your mother used to say that you know, a long time ago. Do you remember, little human? Trust in the lies, she said to tell yourself you’ll be fine. It’ll be easy as pie, my child. Yes, that’s it.. Do you remember, now? Remember what happened to your mother, think long and hard… It’s time to run_

Before they knew what was happening, Chara felt tears surge from their eyes and they collapsed to the ground, falling to their knees. The room began to shake and tremble with noises, Papyrus running to their side, voices screaming all around them. There wasn’t any point, they were dying. They would come back after they saved themselves, right? Their companions promised that if they left, they would be allowed to come back.. But since when did they keep promises?

In a moment of almost possession, Chara stood rapidly and stumbled backwards, turning on heel and running. Where would they run, they had no idea, but they knew that the lock was open and if they just kept sprinting that they would eventually get out. They would find a way to save themselves and they _would_ come back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what is plor


	9. Fire and Shadow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chara and Cherice fight to the death...  
> Twice.

“Hey, guys.. I got a phone call I have to take really quick. Something I need to take care of. Don’t worry, you can start the movie and I’ll be right back. Keep my little brother here safe and loved, alrightie?” Chara sat down Asriel’s flower pot on the coffee table in the living room, waving to Frisk and the other little humans to step into the hall. The whole gang was going to be watching movies and eating, it was going to be quite a lot of fun. Chara hoped to handle whatever business they had as quickly as possible.

“What’s going on Papyrus? Why did you call, what did you say was wrong?” Chara said into the phone, pausing to listen to Papyrus’s jumbled report. He seemed to be in quite a frenzy, but they were able to interpret his words. The no mercy child had escaped the prison somehow, and who knows where they were going to go. So, to be prepared, Chara went to the armory, donning their gear and drawing their blade. They were going to find this child and fix things to the best of their ability. As soon as Chara turned around, one of their guards ran towards them, stopping to pant and catch their breath.

“The child.. The killer.. They’re in the courtyard, you have to go, none of us can stop them, they’re just as strong as you are. You have to do something.” They pleaded, and Chara nodded. They left the room and made their way steadily towards the courtyard. They saw the child in the distance, and Chara stepped into the light where they could be visibly seen by their adversary.

“So this is it, huh? Seeing you now I almost pity you, in fact I do. You’re dying, Chara, and there’s nothing in this world that can save you. No matter how much you hide it, behind the insanity you’re still a child. A lost child.” Chara sighed, stepping out into the courtyard underneath the moonlight, tightening their grip on the hilt of the blade at their hip. Their twin of another timeline sat cross legged in the dirt, not even looking up.

 

“Yes, I’m dying, an excellent observation, Chara. You’re wrong about one thing, though. There is something that can save me, one last thing that can keep me alive..” The other Chara replied, slowly rising to their feet and turning around. Their form began to twitch, a menacing shadow trying to rip itself free and lightning strikes of different faces surrounding them. “I need your soul, it’s the only one that will line up with mine, the only perfect match. Right now, you’re the only thing standing between me and survival, so lay down your blade and give me what I want.”

“You see, the thing is.. I need this, and I refuse to give it up to anyone.” Chara replied casually, drawing their blade from its sheath and giving it a little twirl. The strikes of unbridled electricity that surrounded the other Chara began to fuse with the vicious shadow around them, ripping and tearing at their body and till it began to morph and change from the small child to a cloaked and armored killer. Twin blades drew out from the gauntlets strapped on their arms, spinning razors against their shoulder and knives strapped along their legs.

“Then I guess it’s time we dance!” The other Chara laughed maniacally, their shadow ripping free from their body as both of them charged towards our Chara, throwing the razor sharp spinning blades from their backs towards them. Preparing a stance, Chara dug firmly into the ground and sliced their blade across the air, flames streaming from the tip to create a wall that turned the oncoming blades into ash.

The fight was a dance of fire and shadow, neither Chara able to land a single hit on one another as heated metal clashed and magic burst in the air. Although they used very different types of magic, their styles of fighting were uncomfortably similar, flipping over, ducking and sliding through and around every oncoming threat. Chara had come dangerously close to striking Cherice with their whirlwind of flame, but at the last second they switched places with their shadow and came at them from another angle.

It was a fight that would never end, pitting the unstoppable force against the immovable object, leaving them there to dance for eternity until one of them made a mistake. Neither of them ever did, neither of them ever landed a single hit but their attempts left the courtyard a blazing pit of crimson fire and corrupted shadow. At least until one tiny slip.. For, you see, Cherice had nothing left in this world to lose, but Chara had everything to lose and so the ruthless onslaught left them afraid, afraid of what would happen if they lost.. What would happen to Frisk.

And with that, Cherice took the upper hand, marking them for death as they split their form in four, each one running towards Chara from every different direction, leaving them to throw up their walls of fire and desperately dance away but it wasn’t enough, the shadows were everywhere and Chara found themselves being hit from all sides, taking a shadow with them on every strike until finally.. Cherice was in their sight, the whirlwind of fire would be at them soon and Chara would deliver the final strike but

The whirlwind burst into flame and shadow, leaving nothing but smoke and ash behind as Chara looked down… Down at the blood coated blade pressing out from their chest and they fell to their knees, dropping their sword as Cherice laughed, kneeling before them and sheathing their blades.

“That was fun for us, Chara, but now playtime is over.. There isn’t a soul left that can stop me now that you’re out of the way.” Cherice giggled maddeningly, taking off Chara’s helmet and throwing it to the side, stretching out their fingers and looking deep into their eyes. They punched Chara square in the throat, and they fell backwards, the world swirling around into darkness. It all faded away, and they could hear a soft music playing in the distance, accompanied by Frisk’s voice as they felt their life slip away. But then something happened that they did not expect, they were thrust back into the light of the world, but not where they expected to be.

“The child.. The killer.. They’re in the courtyard, you have to go, none of us can stop them, they’re just as strong as you are. You have to do something.” They pleaded, and Chara nodded. They left the room and made their way steadily towards the courtyard. They had a strange sense of Deja Vu wash over them as they stepped into the light of the courtyard and stared down the murderous child-demon.

“So this is it, huh? Seeing you now I almost pity you, in fact I do. You’re dying, Chara, and there’s nothing in this world that can save you. No matter how much you hide it, behind the insanity you’re still a child. A lost child.” Chara sighed,, tightening their grip on the hilt of the blade at their hip. Their twin of another timeline sat cross legged in the dirt, not even looking up.

 

“Yes, I’m dying, an excellent observation, Chara. You’re wrong about one thing, though. There is something that can save me, one last thing that can keep me alive..” The other Chara replied, slowly rising to their feet and turning around. Their form began to twitch, a menacing shadow trying to rip itself free and lightning strikes of different faces surrounding them. “I need your soul, it’s the only one that will line up with mine, the only perfect match. Right now, you’re the only thing standing between me and survival, so lay down your blade and give me what I want.”

“You see, the thing is.. I need this, and I refuse to give it up to anyone.” Chara replied casually, drawing their blade from its sheath and giving it a little twirl. The strikes of unbridled electricity that surrounded the other Chara began to fuse with the vicious shadow around them, ripping and tearing at their body and till it began to morph and change from the small child to a cloaked and armored killer. Twin blades drew out from the gauntlets strapped on their arms, spinning razors against their shoulder and knives strapped along their legs.

“Then I guess it’s time we dance!” The other Chara laughed maniacally, their shadow ripping free from their body as both of them charged towards our Chara, throwing the razor sharp spinning blades from their backs towards them. Preparing a stance, Chara dug firmly into the ground and sliced their blade across the air,slamming the oncoming blades into the dirt, they ducked down, picked them up and sent them whirling back into their adversary.

The fight was a dance of fire and shadow, neither Chara able to land a single hit on one another as heated metal clashed and magic burst in the air. Although they used very different types of magic, their styles of fighting were uncomfortably similar, flipping over, ducking and sliding through and around every oncoming threat. But this time, Chara had a feeling burning inside their gut, one that told them not to swing where Cherice was, but where Cherice was seconds from being. The shadows, the living, breathing shadows that had been summoned, were now being mentally tracked in Chara’s mind. They would fake out a swing at Cherice only to turn and quickly strike at the shadow just split seconds before Cherice would arrive, almost impossible to dodge.

It was a fight that would never end in any normal circumstance, pitting the unstoppable force against the immovable object, leaving them there to dance for eternity until one of them made a mistake. But it wouldn’t take a mistake, for now Chara knew in their soul every single move that Cherice would make. Cherice could barely hit Chara, and Chara was able to swiftly beat and batter Cherice down, the attempts to win leaving the courtyard a blazing pit of crimson fire and corrupted shadow. All it took was one tiny slip.. For, you see, the power of Cherice’s soul was waning, and Chara’s burst with sheer determination.

And with that, Cherice made one last desperate play, marking them for death as they split their form in four, each one running towards Chara from every different direction, leaving them to throw up their walls of fire and desperately dance away but it wasn’t enough, the shadows were everywhere and Chara found themselves being hit from all sides, taking a shadow with them on every strike until finally.. Cherice was in their sight, the whirlwind of fire was ready and they prepared to send it flying towards their adversary. Cherice grinned, waiting for the blow.. And Chara feigned the strike, sending flames billowing from the tip of their blade to entice Cherice into swapping places with their shadow.

And Chara turned around, jumped into the air and pulled a massive whip of flame from their blade, slamming it into the ground with all their might, causing a shockwave that rippled throughout the building and sending Cherice into the air. Chara jumped up, blinking all around Cherice, swinging their blade all across them and drop kicking them into the ground. But Cherice wasn’t quite dead, no.. Not yet.. 1 single HP.. And so Chara stood, walked over to where Cherice lay and knelt down.

“You won’t die, not today, not forever.” They smiled, plunging their hand through Cherice’s chest and ripping their red soul free, though it could no longer be truly described as red. It was covered in a black goop, almost shattered with cracks all throughout it. And Cherice’s body turned to ash.


End file.
